Reviews for Moving Violations: War Zones, Wheelchairs and Declarations of Independence

The average rating for Moving Violations: War Zones, Wheelchairs and Declarations of Independence based on 2 reviews is 4.5 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2008-01-08 00:00:00 Monique Franklin This is an absolutely stunning 275-page book that unfortunately comes in at a merely-very-good 367 pages. Okay, okay, that's a very glib way to sum this up, and it does a disservice to Hockenberry's memoir, which is full of guts, truth, insight, and candor. I do absolutely recommend it, with very few qualifications, and one of those qualifications is that it can't quite decide if it wants to be a recounting of Hockenberry's personal (emotional and physical) struggle with his disability, a disability-rights manifesto, or a meditation on US foreign policy and how Americans are treated abroad. While it's entirely possible to do all three in the same book, the "glue" holding each bit together is cracking a little; sometimes Hockenberry gets lost in tangents and could benefit from some reining in. John Hockenberry is a reporter (at the time of this book, he was working for NPR), and has been a paraplegic since an auto accident at the age of 19. He spent several years as an NPR correspondent in the Middle East, including during the Gulf War. (Among the best parts of this book are the parts where he talks about how an American in a wheelchair is treated in the Middle East; that alone is worth the price of admission.) I'd have liked to see more of his inner struggles and a little less of his struggle against the (mostly-pre-ADA) world he moves through, but those are my own issues, not issues with the book itself. (Although I will admit to cheering him on when he admits that he used to carry around a Swiss Army knife to puncture the tires of NYC cabbies who refused to take him and the wheelchair. Anyone who's ever been tempted to key a car that's illegally parked in the handicapped spaces -- not that I would ever (publicly) admit to having done that -- will be rooting for him in that moment.) Even when Hockenberry gets bogged down in trying to make Grand Statements in often-flowery language, there's still a core of honesty in this one that makes it worth the read. Don't let my vague dissatisfaction with some elements of it keep you from picking it up -- this really is fabulous.

Review # 2 was written on 2008-04-21 00:00:00 sean gillespie stop feeling lucky that you still have use of your legs and start feeling lucky to be alive and thinking. hockenberry, paralyzed from the T-5 vertebra down after surviving a car accident at age 19, is intelligent and wise, determined and contrarian, real and awe-inspiring. his memoir takes you through rehab, romance, broadcasting, war, and more. if i owned 1000 copies of this book i would give one to everyone i know.